


Gangstas in Space

by starksborn



Category: Saints Row
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, SR4 AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-12
Updated: 2015-07-12
Packaged: 2018-04-09 00:35:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,601
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4327113
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starksborn/pseuds/starksborn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for my RP account, but an AU idea I've wanted to try for a while now: The Boss discovers (by accident) that Zinyak kidnapped Killbane and stuck him in a simulated prison. Almost on a whim, they decide to rescue him and bring him aboard the ship, figuring that every extra pair of hands they can get can't hurt the situation.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Gangstas in Space

**Author's Note:**

> As mentioned, this was originally written for my RP account, but I liked it so much I thought I'd throw it up here. As such there might be one or two details deviating from standard canon, but nothing major!

“You have got to be to be joking,” Matt says, voice raised above what the Boss is currently considering an  _acceptable_  level. They pinch the bridge of their nose, crossing one arm over their chest.

“ _Matt_ ,” they growl. 

“You have  _got_  to be _joking_!” Matt all but yells. “I am  _not_  risking my own life and limbs to save  _Killbane_!” 

“Matt!” the Boss snaps, dropping their hand and glowering at him with slate grey eyes that until recently, he’d never seen unobscured by sunglasses. “We already went through the trouble to get him out of his prison, it doesn’t make sense to do that and then leave him to rot on Zinyak’s ship.” 

“Yes,” Matt says, “but when we rescued him the first time we thought he was  _Angel_ , and also  _worth_  rescuing. It was a silly mistake, really, there’s no need to risk everyone’s lives over something like this.” The Boss’s upper lip twitches a little at the sound of Angel’s name, and they take a moment to set their jaw and tap their fingers against their thigh before responding. 

“I’m not happy about this either,” they say, voice terse. “But like it or not we  _need_  him. If nothing else he’s another body to throw at the Zin and right now we need as many of those as we can get.” 

“And if some of us  _die_  trying to get him?” Matt throws his hands up in exasperation and rests them on his hips. “Then what do we do?” 

“I don’t know!” the Boss snaps. “But it’s a risk we have to take, just like we have every time we’ve picked someone up. We’ve been lucky so far, this shouldn’t be a problem.” 

“That’s a lot of  _risk_  for someone no one on this ship can even  _tolerate_ ,” Matt says. 

“I gotta agree with Matt on this one,” Shaundi says. “Fuckin’  _Killbane_? How could we even trust that son of a bitch?”

“What’s he gonna do, Shaundi?” the Boss asks. “Wrestle us to death? He’s gonna be out numbered and over powered.” 

“Besides,” Johnny says, speaking up for the first time, “I know there’s bad blood between you guys and Killbane, but from what I’ve been told he’s not entirely stupid. I don’t think he’s gonna be to happy to find out Zinyak blew up the Earth and everyone on it.” 

“I’m not doing it,” Matt says. “I don’t  _care_ , I’m not risking my well being for him.” He crosses his arms over his chest and turns away from the Boss, clearly pouting about the situation. The Boss lets out a low growl, and then seems to catch themself and sigh. 

“Matt look,” they say. “I’m the one who opened this can of worms regarding Killbane. This is  _my_  mess, and I’m gonna clean it up but like it or not, I need your help to do this okay?” 

Matt seems to waver a little, glancing back over at them, but then he just huffs and turns away again. 

“ _No_.” 

Any control the Boss has over their temper melts away and they scowl at Matt, closing the distance between the two of them and grabbing a fistful of his hair. They slam the younger man face first into one of the computer consoles, causing Pierce and Shaundi to yelp in surprise while Matt yells. 

“Listen here you  _scrawny little shit_ ,” the Boss snarls. “I wasn’t too happy about saving  _you_  either but I fucking did it because I knew we were gonna need you. Killbane is gonna be fucking useful and like it or not you are gonna do your  _goddamn job_  and help me get his fucking ass onto this ship, or I’m gonna rip that fancy little eyeball of yours  _back out of your fucking face_  are we clear?!” 

“Yes,” Matt says, voice muffled by the keyboard in his face. 

“What?” the Boss asks. 

“Yes!” Matt repeats. Johnny intervenes then, reaching between them and prying the Boss’s hand out of Matt’s hair. 

“You made your point, Boss,” he says. “I don’t think this is gonna be an issue again, right Matt?” 

“No,” Matt says. He straightens up and rubs the side of his face, avoiding eye contact with the Boss. Johnny puts a hand on the Boss’s chest and pushes them back, walking them to the other side of the room.  

“You gotta ease up a little,” Johnny mutters, looking down at the Boss and frowning. “This ain’t you.” The Boss smacks his hand away from their chest and glares up at him. 

“You’ve been dead for seven years,” they say, “how the fuck would you know who I am?” 

Johnny’s eyebrows raise above the rim of his sunglasses, and there’s almost something like  _hurt_  crossing his face when the Boss pushes away from him and starts making for the door. They pause long enough to point to Matt and Kinzie. 

“I want a ping on Killbane’s location inside Zinyak’s ship and equipment ready to roll out in an hour,” they snap. They turn on their heel and storm through the command center doors, letting them hiss shut behind them and leaving the rest of the crew standing around dumbfounded and concerned. 

Fourty five minutes later Johnny finds the Boss sitting in a seat in the bridge, propping their feet up on a console and leaning back with their arms behind their head, staring blankly out at the darkness surrounding the ship. 

“Hey,” he says, leaning on the console next to their legs. “Matt and Kinzie found the pod Killbane popped out of, shouldn’t be too hard to track him. Matt said just look for a trail of Zin that’ve been shoved in toilets.” 

Johnny pauses to shrug. 

“Whatever the fuck that means.” The Boss says nothing in response, and Johnny frowns. “You want some back up on this one? I can’t imagine you’re looking forward to saving this guy, no matter how useful he could be.” 

“No,” the Boss says. They drop their feet from the console and lean forward in the chair. “I want you to stay here, if we get followed on the way out I want you on one of the defensive turrets.” 

“All right,” Johnny says. “Kinzie said the power armor is okay to bring, it’s still kinda banged up from when you got me out but it should do for now.” The Boss shakes their head. 

“No, I’m gonna leave it,” they say. “It’s a lot more banged up than Kinzie’s letting on, and we might need it later. I’m gonna try and do this one kinda quiet.”

“What do you mean quiet?” Johnny asks. “How do you think that’s gonna work?” 

“Zinyak probably knows about the history between Killbane and the Saints,” they say. They shrug and stand up, stretching and rolling their shoulders. “He won’t expect us to  _actually_  save him. He’s not like Matt, someone we ended up working with anyway. Killbane’s always been an enemy, and he’s goddamn lucky he escaped Steelport with his life, Zinyak won’t be looking for us to save him. I figure I can sneak in, find him and then we’ll just…wing it on the way out, I guess.” 

“That’s a pretty shit fucking plan,” Johnny says. “I’m not gonna lie that sounds stupid as hell.” The Boss frowns in response, furrowing their brows and curling their lip a little. 

“Well it’s all I fuckin’ got, Johnny,” they say. Johnny sighs and holds his hands up. 

“Fine, go with it,” he says. “I’m tired of fighting with you when we got Zin to fight.” He holds his hands up a little higher and then drops them, pushing away from the console and walking out of the bridge. The Boss remains for a moment, standing next to the chair and clenching their hands into fists until their knuckles go white. 

* * *

Matt doesn’t look in the Boss’s direction or say anything to them the whole time they’re prepping to make the drop. The only times he speaks is when he’s testing the communications, making sure it’s in working order before going silent again. Kinzie and Keith David fly the ship into range of Zinyak’s, using stealth systems to sneak into a loading zone and drop the Boss off undetected. The Boss hits the deck of the Zin ship and makes themself as scarce as possible, narrowly avoiding a patrol of aliens. 

They wait until it’s clear before moving down the hallway, crouching low and keeping an eye out for more Zin. They wait until they’re sure they’re alone before tapping their ear piece. 

“Which way to Killbane?” they ask. Dead air fills their ear, and they frown as Matt stays silent. “I’m flying blind here, Matt.”

“Straight down the hall and through the doors,” Matt says. He clearly sounds annoyed, and right now the Boss can’t bring themself to care. “You’re actually on the other side of his pod, chances are you should run right into him, provided he kept going straight.” 

That works out just fine for the Boss. They don’t imagine sneaking up on Killbane from the back while he’s trapped on a ship full of aliens could be the best way to start this rescue mission. They keep moving down the hall and get about halfway when the doors hiss open. They dive behind a crate and stay low, pressing their back to it and daring to peek over the top of it, hoping maybe Matt was right and they found Killbane and don’t have to venture deeper into the ship. 

It’s another Zin patrol coming through, and the Boss ducks back down and tries to make themself as small as possible while  _praying_  the Zin don’t happen to  _glance_  to their  _right_  when they pass. The group continues down the walkway, and the Boss watches them with a rifle aimed at their backs until they disappear around the corner at the end of the hall. 

The Boss doesn’t even stay to let out a sigh of relief, they just vault over the crate as quickly as they can and make a charge for the doors. The room on the other side opens up into a canal, with pods lining the walls and the ceilings. There’s a walkway in front of them running horizontal to the canal, and a platform with Killbane’s empty pod is across from them and a ways below. 

The Boss hises out a swear, and it seems to catch Matt’s attention. 

“What’s wrong?” he asks, voice laced slightly with worry. It sounds like he’s getting over his mad, maybe. 

“I’m behind Killbane’s pod all right,” the Boss says, “but I’m also about a level above it.” 

This time, Matt does the swearing and they can faintly hear his fingers hitting the keyboard back on the ship. 

“I don’t suppose you can just  _jump_  to it, can you?” The Boss looks down, leaning over the railing and sighing. There’s about twenty feet of space between the walkway and the platform below, and although they’re  _tempted_  to try it, it feels too risky. 

“Maybe if I wanna break a leg or two,” they say. They can hear Matt mumble something under his breath. 

“Okay hang on,” he says. “Let me find something else, turning back and trying to work your way around could take  _ages_.”He goes silent again for a moment, and then comes back suddenly. “Look to your left, there should be some sort of service ladder a few feet down. If these schematics are right, you can make it across by shimmying your way over some cables if you’re careful.” 

The Boss goes down the walkway, looking over the side and locating the ladder. They move their rifle around to their back and swing a leg over the railing. It takes them a few minutes to work their way down and across, pulling themself up over the side of the platform and taking a second to catch their breath. 

“Great,” they mutter. “All that work and I’m still where I didn’t want to be: taking Killbane from behind.” 

“Good  _god_ , man!” Matt snaps. “ _Phrasing!”_

The Boss smirks a little, shaking their head and pulling their rifle back around to their front. They head towards the doors at the end of the platform and follow the trail of pod-juice Killbane left behind in the hallways until it runs dry. 

“You were right though,” they say lowly. “It looks like he went mostly straight until now. He ducked around this corner ahead and then I’m losing the trail.” 

“Must’ve encountered a Zin patrol and wanted to avoid them,” Matt says. The Boss rounds the corner and then stops dead, raising an eyebrow and standing up straight. There’s eight dead Zin piled up in the hallway. Three of them are sporting broken necks, their heads spun around at unnatural angles. Two of them had their faces smashed against the wall, and the remaining three all have big, still-smoking holes in their chests from laser fire. 

“ _Or_ ,” the Boss says, “he found a patrol and tried to make friends.” 

“The Zin should consider themselves lucky they don’t have toilets that function like Earth toilets,” Matt mutters. 

“You gotta let that go, Matt,” the Boss says. They step over the Zin bodies and crouch back down, continuing down the hallway and keeping an eye out for more dead Zin to follow. 

“Jesus, he’s all over the place,” the Boss mumbles after a few more minutes. The bodies Killbane’s leaving in his wake are going in a random, haphazard pattern. He’s clearly not paying attention to where he’s going, and it’s almost looking like he’s diverting his course depending on which direction he’s finding the Zin coming from. 

“You need to find him,” Matt says. “Before he causes so much trouble we can’t get you out quietly.” 

“Right,” the Boss says. “At this rate he’s gonna end up in Zinyak’s lap or something.” 

“ _Phrasing_ ,” Matt hisses. 

The Boss continues following Killbane’s bloody breadcrumbs and suddenly the sound of gunfire and Zin yelling catches their ears. The hallway they’re in ends with a T junction, and there’s laser fire being shot in both directions at the end. The lasers coming from the right start dying down, and the Boss waits until it all dies down completely before stepping into the open. 

There’s a pile of dead Zin to the right, and Killbane’s standing behind a crate and shaking an overheated rifle to the left. He looks up at the sound of the Boss’s foot steps, and within a flash they’ve got the wrong end of a gun trained right at their forehead. 

“Woah, hey,” they say, stopping where they are and holding their hands up. “We’re on the same side, here.” 

“Oh good, you found him,” Matt says in their ear, his voice laced with sarcasm. “Fucking wanker.” 

“Sooo,” the Boss says, lowering their hands just a little. “Matt says ‘hi’.” 

Killbane’s brows furrow and there’s a long moment where he doesn’t say anything. The Boss stays with their hands raised, glancing between the gun and his face and wondering what the best course of action would be. They can’t just stand in this hallway forever, and who knows how long until Killbane decides he’s not gonna shoot them? 

Finally, he lowers the gun just a little and speaks, his voice thick and hoarse from his time in the pod. 

“What?” he asks, frowning more and lowering the gun the rest of the way. He shifts his weight and stands to his full height, and the Boss decides it’s all right to relax for now. They drop their arms by their side and then tap their ear pierce. 

“All right, we’re good,” they say. “Get us outta here, Matt.” 

“Go down the hall you’re in and make the next right, then two lefts and then keep going straight,” Matt says. “Eventually you’re gonna come out at a suitable evac point.” 

“Roger,” Boss says. “What’s your ETA?” 

“I’ll let you know when you get there,” Matt says. “We can’t risk getting there early and being sitting ducks for the Zin, when you hit the extraction point we’ll come get you.” 

The Boss says nothing in response, but they do sigh a little as the comm clicks off and dead air fills their ear again. Killbane’s leaning against the wall now, running one hand over his face and resting the laser rifle against his shoulder. The Boss hasn’t actually seen the man up close since Murderbrawl, once he left Steelport they really weren’t that interested in going after him. It was a bone of contention that Angel had seemed content to  _chew_  on, right up until the last time the Boss saw him. 

Time has not appeared to have been  _kind_  to Killbane. He’s put on a little weight since his wrestling days, but even so he still looks like he could wrestle a  _bear_  bare handed. The years show on his face in the form of dark eye circles and age lines, and the Boss suspects his recent stay in the simulated hell Zinyak designed for him hasn’t helped. There’s a few weeks of stubble on his face, and even given the circumstances it feels almost  _weird_  to see him without his mask.

“Man,” the Boss mumbles, “I  _really_  shoulda thought to bring you some  _pants_.” Killbane looks over at them, dropping his hand from his face and raising one dark eyebrow. 

“If that’s your biggest concern I think I’ll just surrender myself back to Zinyak,” he says. The Boss can’t help but chuckle a little, stepping around the crate between them and gesturing down the hall. 

“Come on, Matt says if we go this way we’ll find our way out,” they say. 

“You’re seriously risking your ass to get me out of here?” he asks. He hasn’t moved yet, still leaning against the wall. “Why?” 

“Is this  _really_  a discussion we need to have  _now_?” the Boss asks. “We’re fucking leaving, what does it matter  _why_?” There’s a another stretch of silence, and then Killbane shrugs and pushes off from the wall, falling in step next to them. 

“Good point,” he says. They follow Matt’s directions and the Boss is surprised they don’t run into more Zin. Maybe their plan to sneak in is working, and Zinyak isn’t aware the Saints are trying to rescue Killbane, and maybe Killbane managed to avoid triggering any major alarms. 

The two of them take the last corner as instructed and find an empty hallway stretching out in front of them, a large pair of doors seated at the other end. 

“Our way out’s through there,” the Boss says. 

“Straight shot,” Killbane says, peeking around the corner. “Shouldn’t be too hard.” 

“Well good job buddy, now you’ve jinxed us,” the Boss says, frowning and stepping around him. “Everything’s gonna go to shit now, just watch.” 

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Killbane says. He starts off down the hallway and that’s when the doors hiss open, revealing about a dozen Zin marching through. Four of them are carrying shields, and the group spots the two at the other end of the hallway and immediately open fire. 

The Boss and Killbane dive for whatever cover they can find, and it’s not much. A little part of the wall sticking out on either side of the hallway, barely enough to keep them out of the line of lasers. 

“What the  _fuck_  did I just say?!” the Boss yells, glaring across the hall at Killbane and peeking around to fire a few quick bursts. 

“Oh, shut the  _fuck_  up,” Killbane yells back. He lines up the sight on his rifle and manages to take out one of the Zin carrying a shield before ducking back behind the wall. “What now?” 

“I guess we have to deal with your mess,” the Boss says. Killbane rolls his eyes at them as they duck around the corner again and fire their rifle until it overheats. They manage to take out four more of the Zin, and it lowers the numbers to something manageable. The three still holding onto their shields are approaching, and the remaining four are alternating between taking cover and firing. 

The Boss motions for Killbane to stay in cover, and jerks their head towards the nearing three aliens. His eyes shift between them and what he can make out of the hallway, and he nods once. Whatever idea they’ve had, he’s at least going to roll with it. 

The Zin creep into view and the Boss lunges out from cover, taking one by surprise and firing right over the shield and into it’s head. Killbane follows suit, slamming the butt of his rifle right into the nearest alien’s face and ripping the shield from it’s grip. The Boss has taken out the last one and commandeered the shield, providing cover fire for the both of them to advance. 

They dispatch the remaining aliens with ease and don’t stop moving until the doors hiss shut behind them. For good measure, Killbane jams the edge of his shield into the panel next to the door, satisfied with the loud clanking noise inside the door and the sparks coming from the panel. The room on the other side of the doors opens up in front of them, the walkways and balconies falling away into open air at the end of the platform. The Boss hits their ear piece as the two make their way across to the edge. 

“Matt, we’re here,” they say. “Anytime you guys wanna roll out and pick us up would be nice.” They get no response at first, and they frown. 

“Matt?” 

Matt responds with a heavy, exaggerated sigh.

“ _Fine_ ,” he says, drawing out the word. “We’re on our way.”  

“Now what?” Killbane asks. “We just sit tight and hope Zinyak doesn’t slaughter us before our ride gets here?” 

“Basically,” the Boss says. “Everything looks clear so far, though. I don’t think he even knows we’re here.” 

“Well, now  _you’re_  jinxing us,” Killbane says. The Boss frowns. 

“Shut up, I’m not–” An alarm start blaring suddenly, cutting them off mid sentence as Zin start pouring out from the doors surrounding the large room. They’re  _everywhere,_ coming from the walkways above them and on either side down below.  

Killbane doesn’t even say anything, he just looks down at the Boss and raises an eyebrow before the two of them jump behind a crate and crouch down. 

“Shut up,” the Boss hisses. 

“I wasn’t saying anything,” he says. The Boss glances around and then swears violently. 

“Aw,  _fuck_ , he brought out the murder-bots!” 

“Well I’m flattered Zinyak’s pulling out all the stops for little ol’ me,” Killbane says. “Do you have any more bright fucking ideas?” 

“You mean since I decided to be charitable and rescue one of my most hated enemies?” the Boss asks. “No! I don’t!” 

“Wonderful!” 

They’re being fired upon from all directions, and the most they can do for the time being is scrunch together back-to-back and keep the Zin from getting close enough to overtake them. They focus a good portion of their fire on the murder-bots, trying to keep the bastards from blowing up too close to them. 

“I can’t tell what’s worse about this situation,” Killbane says, raising his voice to be heard over the fighting. “That I’m gonna die, that I’m gonna die trapped on an alien ship, or that I’m gonna trapped on an alien ship and  _buck ass nude_!” 

“How do you think I feel?” the Boss yells back. “I’m gonna die and the last thing I’m gonna see before I go are your saggy ass balls!” 

“Charming!” 

A loud bang echos out over the other noises of the fight, and it attracts both their attention towards the doors they came through. A flash of red light consumes the doors, and out of it rolls a Marauder. It unfolds just as quickly and starts lighting back up, aiming a red laser in their direction. The Boss swears and hooks an arm around Killbane’s bicep, tugging him down and across the platform.  

“Get down!” they yell. The red laser charges and explodes, incinerating the crates they’d been behind just seconds earlier. Killbane blinks a little, peering around a computer console. 

“What the fuck is that thing?” he asks. 

“I dunno, I think it’s the murder-bots final form,” the Boss says. They hit their earpiece, eyes scanning the distance stretching out from the platform. “Come on Matt!” 

“I’m not exactly in a hurry to rescue Killbane, honestly,” Matt says. 

“Matt!” the Boss yells. 

“All right, I’m kidding,” Matt says. “Just hang in a bit longer, we’re on the way.” 

Another  _boom_  echoes throughout the room and the Boss and Killbane crouch down as low as they can get, trying to avoid the barrage coming from the Marauder. 

“Well, this all went to fucking shit,” the Boss hisses. “We’re fucking pinned down, all we can do is hold this spot until they get here.” 

“That’s easier said than done,” Killbane snaps. “They’re closing in fast, and I’m about out of ammo for this thing.” The Boss checks their own gun and groans. 

“Me too,” they say. They lean back against the console and snort a little. “Man, if I die trying to save your sorry ass Angel’s gonna have me riding around in hell with that fucking tiger for the rest of eternity.” 

Killbane empties his gun and tosses it aside, looking down at the Boss and frowning. 

“Wait,” he says. “What happened to Angel?”

“Oh!” the Boss’s eyebrows go up. “Yeah, I forgot to tell you; Zinyak blew up the Earth. It’s gone, and so is everyone that was still on it.” Killbane doesn’t say anything for a moment, and the sound of the Zin still trying to kill them is almost deafening. 

“ _What_?!” he bellows. “What do you mean  _it’s gone_?!” The Boss just makes an exploding motion with their hands and grins sheepishly at him, and all the color drains from Killbane’s face. 

“How long ago?” he asks. His voice has gone hoarse again, and the Boss realizes that _clearly_  there must have been  _someone_ he cared about still down there. 

“A few weeks,” they say. “Maybe more, it’s hard to keep track out here.” 

Killbane slides the rest of the way down the console, stretching his legs out until he’s just sitting. The Boss says nothing and fires the last remaining clips of ammo in their gun at the swarming enemies surrounding them. When the weapon runs dry they discard it with a flick of the wrist and plop down next to Killbane, resting their hands in their lap and watching for any sign of the others. 

“Look on the bright side,” they say, “it could be worse!” 

“How could this  _possibly_  any worse?” he asks, turning his head to look down at them. The Boss glances up and holds his gaze for a moment before turning their eyes back on the horizon. 

“Actually, yeah,” they say, “you got me on that one.” 

The two of them sit like that, listening to the sound of the Zin getting closer and closer and only moving when the Marauder rolls around the corner and unfolds a few feet away. They scramble to their feet and start backing up, looking for any place to go. The Zin are cornering them from the other side of the console, and if they vault over it they’re going to be left in the open and at the mercy of the murder-bots. 

The Marauder’s laser begins charging, bathing everything in red until it’s blindingly bright–

–and suddenly it goes dark and explodes as turret fire takes it from behind. The Saints ship comes into view, as if materializing out of nowhere and the cargo bay door is wide open. Johnny and Pierce are manning two mounted guns, and Shaundi is firing an alien RPG into the horde of aliens. 

“Let’s go!” the Boss yells, taking off for the ship. Killbane is right behind them, and the two of them make the jump from the platform to the ship, landing hard at Shaundi’s feet and rolling in just as the door begins to raise shut. 

“Boss!” Johnny exclaims. “You okay?” 

“Yeah,” the Boss says, getting to their feet. “Get down to the defense turrets below, I have a feeling this is gonna be a bumpy ride. Shaundi, you too, go with him.” 

“Sure thing Boss,” she says, dropping the RPG and turning around. Killbane is standing in front of her, hunched over with his hands on his knees and trying to catch his breath. Shaundi hauls back a fist and catches him right in the cheek and manages to send him sprawling right back onto his ass. “Long time no see, you son of a bitch.” 

“Aw, for fuck’s sake, really?!” the Boss snaps, throwing their hands up as Johnny and Shaundi take off for the other side of the ship. 

“Honestly how  _were_  you expecting this to go?” Pierce asks. The Boss goes to respond and is cut off by the sound of something exploding and the ship listing violently to one side. The three of them go tumbling, slamming into the wall of the cargo bay. The ship goes right again and they manage to keep their footing as it evens out, though Killbane’s starting to look a mild shade of  _green_  with all the thrashing about. 

“Keep an eye on him,” the Boss says, “I’m gonna head to the bridge.” 

“Oh sure, leave me with the giant babysitting duty,” Pierce says. “Nice to know I always get the important jobs!” 

* * *

The ride out and away from Zinyak’s ship is hairy, and the Saints take a bit of damage to their own vessel in the process. It’s not enough to be  _seriously_  worried, but the Boss knows it’s more than anyone else was willing to take just to save Killbane. It’s going to take a lot to make this up to everyone, and they’re seriously hoping Killbane manages to be useful. 

Hopefully the fact that the Earth is gone and they’re all that’s left will be enough to get him over whatever ego he might have remaining. 

They manage to get him settled in and find him some clothes, and he shows up in the command center a while later. Pierce and some of the others are playing cards while Kinzie and Matt go over the computer systems and fill the Boss in on damages. As soon as the doors open and Killbane walks in, the tension builds and gets so thick it’s almost _suffocating._  

No one says anything, and the Boss can feel pairs of eyes falling to them one by one. 

“Am I supposed to say something here?” they ask, raising their eyebrows and putting their hands on their hips. 

“I’m still not okay with this,” Shaundi says. “And I still don’t trust him.” 

“Don’t worry about it, Shaundi,” Matt says, not even bothering to look up from his keyboard. “The toilets here don’t work like Earth toilets, so no one’s going be getting _drowned_  in one, and without a wrestling ring he’s pretty much powerless.” 

“He blew up Johnny’s funeral,” Shaundi adds. 

“Which doesn’t really matter now, does it?” Johnny asks. Shaundi shoots him a look and he shrugs. “I’m just sayin’.” 

“ _He_  is standing  _right here_ ,” Killbane says. He clenches his fists as his sides and scowls, eyes scanning the other people in the room. 

“All I’m going to say is Angel wouldn’t be happy about this,” Pierce says. 

“Well  _Angel_  isn’t fucking  _here_  is he?” the Boss snaps. They grind their teeth and then raise their hands. “All right fine, here, I’ll say something.” 

“Look, Killbane,” they continue, “I’m gonna be honest we only found you by  _accident_. I was looking for something else inside the simulation when we found your prison, and we weren’t sure  _who_  was inside it until I got there. Once I got you out I didn’t feel right just leaving you on Zinyak’s ship, and the way I see it we’re all pretty strapped. Any extra pair of hands to help us with this alien motherfucker is too good to pass up, no matter  _whose_  hands they are. I don’t know how this is gonna work out with all of us being cramped in here like this, given the history between you and the Saints but we _all_ -” the Boss makes a point of turning their gaze on their other crew members “-need to make the best of it.”

“Is that understood?” they ask. Killbane runs a hand down his face, blinking in the lights of the room and then nodding. 

“Right now I just want somewhere to get some  _sleep_ ,” he says. “Unless that’s going to _offend_  somebody.” The Boss waves a hand dismissively. 

“There’s a couch in the cargo bay, you can crash there,” they say, ignoring Matt’s indignant  _squawk_ of protest regarding  _ownership_  of said couch. Killbane turns and exits the room without another word, and the tension eases up as he does. Shaundi is glaring at the Boss, but turns back to the card game without another word, and the Boss sits down in a chair and sighs, looking up at the ceiling. 

Things may have just gotten a lot more complicated by bringing Killbane into the mix, and they know that if shit goes to hell because of it, it’s going to be solely on their shoulders to figure out. 

_You made this bed_ , they think,  _you better find a way to get comfortable._


End file.
